Dauntless Downy Woodpecker

At our feeders nestled in the woods, 5 species of woodpeckers have been observed dining on suet, and occasionally on sunflower seeds and peanuts. In order of appearance from least to most common, those woodpeckers are: Pileated Woodpecker, Northern Flicker (yellow-shafted form), Red-bellied Woodpecker, Hairy Woodpecker and Downy Woodpecker. On very rare occasions I will see Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers on our property, but they have never come to the feeders.

As you might imagine, the least common visitors get the biggest hoots and hollers from me, and are most likely to find themselves in the cross-hairs of my camera lens. This is unfair to the more common visitors, such as the Hairy and Downy Woodpeckers. As I was looking for photos to illustrate this post, I noticed that I don't have very many photos of Downy Woodpeckers, and the ones that I do have all look virtually the same.


Yup, that's a male Downy Woodpecker clinging to the suet cage. We can tell that it's a male by the little note of red on the back of his head; female Downies have no red on their head.

While I may not jump up and down every time I see a Downy Woodpecker, I certainly do appreciate each appearance they make. They are easily visible year-round, and the parents will bring their begging fledges to our suet feeders once they are old enough to leave the safety of the nest. One time, about 5 years ago, they nested in a snag just above our driveway, and we were alerted to said nest by the incessant begging of the babies within. It took a few days to figure out where this high-pitched squeaking, reminiscent of a mouse with a megaphone, was coming from, and I was happy to learn that it was a clutch of successfully hatched wee Downies.

Since woodpeckers aren't songbirds, we don't really think of them making much noise except for pecking and drumming with their bills on trees or fence posts. They do emit a number of vocalizations, though. Downies make a loud "pick!" sound as well as a whinnying-type of call that descends in pitch at the end. They also make some other squeaky and churring calls, especially when several birds are in close proximity to each other. The Downy population in our woods has slowly been on the rise since I started counting them for Project FeederWatch seven years ago. At first we would only see 1 or 2 Downies at a time, but now it is common to have at least 4 within view at once. I know there are more of them around than that, but keeping them all in sight at one time is tricky! When they are not perched on a feeder, they are in constant motion, hitching up and down the trees in search of bugs in and under the bark, and during the winter it seems like they are constantly bickering, harassing each other, and shooing each other away.


A Downy at the homemade bird dough bowl, watching someone else fly by. Perhaps another Downy?
This year I have noticed an interesting trend among my Downies. Normally when I step outside to refill the feeders, or just to have a look around on the deck, all the birds scatter except for the fearless Carolina Chickadees. Now the Downies are joining the ranks as the next species to be unperturbed by my presence. I can stand right next to the suet feeders with a Downy at arm's length, munching away like it doesn't even see me. Yet another bird whose trust I have presumably earned. I feel mighty honored to stand so close to these fantastic creatures.

Interesting feeder observations

During the Project FeederWatch season I keep a closer eye on what's going on at my feeders, for obvious reasons. When FeederWatch is not in session (i.e. spring, summer and some of fall), however, I don't always pay a lot of attention to the feeders, usually due to a combination of being busy with other outdoor stuff and lack of bird activity at the seed buffet.

A few weeks before this year's FeederWatch season began I did notice a few interesting feeding behaviors.

Interesting behavior #1 - Carolina Chickadees eating thistle seed.
Thistle is widely know as the caviar equivalent for finches of all types. I have never seen thistle listed as a seed that chickadees will go for. If you look at the various charts that show what birds will eat what kind of food at your feeders, you will usually see two listings: one for what is "preferred" and one for what is "readily eaten" (read: tolerated). Thistle doesn't show up as either of those choices for chickadees. And yet, my chickadees really got into it during a period where I wasn't offering sunflower or safflower seeds.


Chickadee-dee-dee clinging on the thistle feeder, and also sharing the feeder with an American Goldfinch.
Once I started offering black-oil sunflower and safflower seed again, I thought for sure they would ditch the thistle, but they proved that theory wrong. They will, of course, partake of sunflower, safflower and suet, but they still also come to the thistle. Anyone else out there ever see their chickadees eat thistle? I know the Juncos will eat it, but only on the ground. A friend once told me that Mourning Doves would routinely eat thistle at his feeders (he had a thistle feeder with perches on it; otherwise, I wouldn't have believed him because there's no way a Mourning Dove could cling to a feeder like the one I have pictured here.)


This proves to me that it's not just one rogue individual who developed a taste for the thistle; at LEAST two of them are fond of it. And look how those toes are clinging to the mesh-like material of the feeder!
Interesting behavior #2 - Northern Cardinals eating suet... from the suet cages.
This one surprised me even more than the chickadees eating thistle seed! Why? Because, typically, cardinals are not birds that cling to things well. Other birds are much more suited to this (especially woodpeckers and nuthatches, but also chickadees, wrens, titmice and finches) simply because of the way their bodies are built and adaptations they have developed over time. How often do you see a cardinal clinging to the side of a tree? Never! Perched on a branch or on the ground is most common, or on a flat feeder like a platform or other type of feeder where they have room to stand. I have seen them attempt (and sometimes succeed) to perch on tube feeders that have those small, 4-inch long perches, but even that is often a tremendous struggle because it's hard for them to keep their balance. So hanging onto a suet cage was beyond my comprehension. (Please excuse the graininess of the following photos - the light was low, so camera settings where cranked up to compensate, making for less than perfect images.)


Cardinal on top of the suet cage? Okay, I can deal with that. I have watched them bend over and peck suet from the top of the cake when it's still new and tall enough to come up to the top of the cage.

Wow, far out! Not only is she exhibiting excellent clinging skills, but great maneuverability as well. Notice how she's making her way down closer to that tiny sliver of suet cake at the bottom of the cage.
As with the chickadees turning to thistle, the cardinals were turning to suet because there was no sunflower or safflower seed available. They continue to repeat this when the seed runs out, but UNLIKE the chickadees, they abandon the suet as soon as seed becomes available again. So the suet is an item of last resort for the cardinals, whereas the thistle got incorporated into the daily diet for the chickadees.

We don't normally see suet "marketed" toward cardinals because most suet is sold in cakes or plugs and offered in feeders that aren't cardinal-friendly. I learned last winter, however, that cardinals DO LIKE suet if it's offered in a way that they can get to it easily. When I make my homemade bird dough, I crumble it into different-sized chunks and scatter it along the deck railing, and also put it in a small dish. They really took to that last year. Knowing this, it makes me wonder if the cardinals that I'm seeing on the suet cages this year are the same cardinals that ate my bird dough last winter, and somehow recognize the suet cakes as something similar, and "oh, hey, this stuff might be good, too, and I'll try my darndest to get to it!"

Suet score!
I would love to hear your stories of odd or interesting feeder behaviors! Feel free to share in the comments.

May the counting begin!

Project FeederWatch got underway this past weekend. This will be my 7th season counting for this citizen science project run by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, and I can't wait to see what kind of new and interesting things I'll see at my feeders this winter, whether it be a new species, a record-breaking flock of Grackles, or a never before seen behavior or interaction among the birds.

Already I have some interesting data to look at from my first counting session. Looks like things are getting off to a start that is practically identical to last season. The exact same species showed up, with only the tiniest variation in the numbers of each. How about that?

species	wknd of 11.13.10	wknd of 11.12.11
Mourning Dove	13	13
Red-bellied Woodpecker	1	1
Downy Woodpecker	2	2
Hairy Woodpecker	1	2
Carolina Chickadee	4	5
Tufted Titmouse	3	2
White-breasted Nuthatch	3	4
Northern Cardinal	2	2
American Goldfinch	9	10
Total individuals	38	41

Looking back on past seasons' data, I should expect to see some Juncos next weekend. I have seen a few in town already, but none yet in our own yard.

I can tell that my fascination with goldfinches and their striking plumage is going to continue.

Here we got a nice look at their white patches above the tail, not feathers you see terribly often
And the nuthatches will continue with their bold antics, running each other off from the feeders. I hope to catch some good shots of them with their various displays of aggression, but they are fast and hard to keep up with the camera. Unless they're eating, that is.

One new bird that I hope to draw in this year is the Brown Creeper. They are definitely in our woods, but they're not exactly a bird that takes to traditional bird feeders. I'm going to try some homemade "bark butter" to see if that will bring them in.

And, it will be time to start making homemade bird dough soon, once the temps actually decide to get cold (as I write this at 8:30 in the evening, it's still 69 degrees outside... I'm not complaining, but it is a bit odd for mid-November!). Will my Pileated Woodpecker come back again this year for a sample of that tasty treat? I surely hope so!

Chickadee love

I've been going through some photos in preparation for an upcoming post, and just couldn't wait any longer to share these 2 photos of a Carolina Chickadee at our feeders. It's a gorgeous, tough little bird, and I can't quite get over how handsome it is. While they won't eat from my hand (yet!), our chickadees are pretty fearless when I'm outside, and I was only about 3 feet away while taking these pictures.




More to come!

Midwest Birding Symposium 2011 - photo highlights

Well, this year's Midwest Birding Symposium was a huge success. I had lots of fun, but still didn't get to spend enough time birding, nor did I spend enough time with my friends. But there's always 2013. That's right, the date has already been set for the NEXT Midwest Birding Symposium, which will take place once again in Lakeside, Ohio, on September 19-22, 2013. Mark your calendars now!

But, I'm getting ahead of myself. Sorry I didn't blog during the event. I did post some photos to Facebook and Flickr, but for those of you who don't follow either of those social media outlets, here are some of my best photos from the event.

Sunrise at Marblehead lighthouse. I birded at this location, but the main attraction, I must admit, was the chance to view something as beautiful as this.

The same morning I was at Marblehead I took this photo of a juvenile Bald Eagle. Sorry for the photo quality. One of the greatest things about the symposium this year was that I saw at least one Bald Eagle every day I was up there. Pretty cool.

On Thursday evening we took a sunset cruise on the Goodtime I. This is the view as we were preparing to leave the pier at Lakeside.

While on the sunset cruise, we looked for gulls, terns, and other water birds. Here, a smattering of Ring-billed Gulls follows behind the boat.

A Ring-billed Gull caught in the beautiful light of dusk.

Sunset on Lake Erie.

Great Egret flies over the water at Meadowbrook Marsh. This is a relatively new birding hotspot in the area. I'll tell you more about it in an upcoming post.

New birding experiences

As I mentioned in my last post, I'm currently busying myself with spending as much time in the field as I can to collect data for my two blocks of Ohio's 2nd Breeding Bird Atlas. What a wild ride it's been! Taking part in this survey effort has driven home to me the fact that there's so much to be seen out there, if only we take (and make) the time to look for it.

One of the blocks that I have claimed for the atlas is very convenient for me. My property and a good portion of my road are within the block, so I already had a lot of data to report about species just from my own back yard and neighborhood. That being said, however, I have been happily surprised to uncover breeding evidence (mostly in the form of fledged birds begging for food from their parents) for a good number of species in my neighborhood (and on my property) just within the last 10-12 days. A partial list of these species includes Eastern Towhee, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Blue-winged Warbler, Ovenbird (that one was 20 feet from my front door - just outrageous!), Wood Thrush, and this little bird:

Please forgive the picture quality - the camera on my iPod is not very good. But look how cute! I found 2 of these little buggers peeping at me from a ditch at the side of the road one evening. I was positively stumped as to what the species might be, though, and there was no parental unit around to tend to it at the time that I spotted it, nor when I checked in on it again the next morning. Seeing mom or dad feeding it sure would have helped me figure out what it was! After some online searches and consultation with a friend, the verdict is: Red-eyed Vireo fledgling. It was literally within seconds of finding this little one that a young Wood Thrush and one of its parents flew across the road and landed in a tree, giving me two breeding confirmations in less than a minute. SUCCESS!

It's funny what a difference a year can make. Last spring I considered joining the atlas effort, and even met with our regional director to learn more about it, but between being committed to classes for OCVN and general lack of knowledge, I just didn't feel comfortable trying to participate last year. Having made it a point to better educate myself about bird ID both by sight and by sound since last spring, I feel pretty good about what I can contribute to the atlas now. I will admit that I was still a little hesitant about the whole thing when I signed up, though. I thought to myself a number of times "how am I going to find breeding evidence for all these birds?" - and I still wonder that each time I go out, despite having had a number of successful outings. But the answer is much easier than I would have imagined. Just let nature show you, and it becomes simple. Allow your instincts to guide you. Watch the birds and really pay attention to their behavioral cues - they will tell you exactly what is going on in no uncertain terms.

Sometimes it's a matter of watching a bird sally back and forth over a field and then return to a spot over and over. I found an Eastern Kingbird nest this way. Sometimes it's a hunch of "maybe I should walk over this way," which gets rewarded with a scolding from a bird, which leads you to find its nest in a tree. That was how I found this Orchard Oriole nest.

Roughly 8 feet off the ground in a very young sycamore tree, I was delighted to have this nest within easy reach of my camera lens (the few oriole nests I've seen before this have been located 20+ feet up in very huge sycamores, sometimes hard to spot even with binoculars). The Cornell Lab's All About Birds website describes the Orchard Oriole's nest as "An open cup of woven grass, lined with fine grass, plant down, wool, and feathers, suspended from fork of tree branch far out on limb."

Given the small size of this sycamore, there weren't very many limbs to go far out on, so she chose instead to stick this pretty much next to the main trunk. What I love about this angle is that you can see all those strands of grass coming down from the top which help to actually suspend the nest (although it seems to be getting support from branches underneath it, too).

Male and female Orchard Oriole, left to right.

This male Orchard Oriole is one that can present an identification challenge for birders who are still learning IDs, myself included! Had this not been pointed out to me in West Virginia a few months ago, I would have been stumped for sure. Adult male Orchard's are normally a deep brick red color, but this fella is just a youngun. He's a first year male (meaning he was born last year), and he's also referred to as a "bearded" male due to the black coloring along his throat. Next year he will molt into his brick red plumage, his wings and tail will go black, and his entire head will be black, not just his throat. It will be interesting to see if an Orchard Oriole pair comes back to this same site next year. If I see a brick-colored male there next year, I can make an educated guess that it's this guy.

Here's the female. She's the first one of the pair who caught my attention by making scolding calls at me and thus giving away her nest. She can be differentiated from a Baltimore Oriole female by her yellow-olive coloring - lady Baltimores have a definitive orange cast to them. In this image I think her resemblance to some of her other Icterid cousins is very obvious, especially that long, pointy beak. I should mention, though, that the Orchard Oriole's size is diminutive compared to a Baltimore Oriole. I didn't notice this until they took flight, and had a seen them only in flight, I might have actually mistaken them for some type of warbler.
"Icterid" is the taxonomic classification for the blackbird family, which includes grackles, cowbirds, meadowlarks, blackbirds (think Red-winged and Yellow-headed), orioles and the bobolink. Interestingly, the orioles are the only birds in this family who seem to have a form of the word "icterid" in their latin name. Orchard Orioles are Icterus spurius, while Baltimore Orioles are Icterus galbula. The word icterus means "jaundiced" or "yellowed" in Latin, very appropriate for a lot of birds who are boldly colored in yellow and orange!

I would say that the drab yellow coloring of this female helps to keep her out of sight under the right circumstances. Here you can see how she easily blends in with the leaves around her.
It's camouflage like this that was part of my concern about being able to spot nests and birds when I signed on for doing the atlasing. But as I said, the birds really do tell you all you need to know. It does take patience and open eyes, but it is amazing what you can see when you really LOOK! I never imagined myself as being one of those birders who drives around slowly and stops frequently to hop out of the car to look around or get a better listen. And yet, here I am - surveying birds and learning, learning, learning all along the way. I wonder what people think when they drive past this "crazy lady" with her binoculars? Most of them slow down, smile and wave, but a few drive by at break-neck speed with little regard for the pedestrian at the side of the road. It is those folks who I most want to tell, to shout at the top of my lungs, "There's newly fledged birds right over there, begging to be fed! They are so cute, and so amazing! They will migrate hundreds, maybe thousands of miles to South America in a matter of months! Isn't that incredible?!" Mostly, I just want them to slow down and take time to smell the roses - and look at the birds.

Phoebe update

It's been well over a month since I have posted about our nesting Eastern Phoebes. As you can imagine, a lot can happen in one month. The last time I posted about them they were just getting the nest built. Well, now they have 5 healthy-looking young ones that will be fledging within the next week.

A few weeks ago, friend, neighbor, and licensed bird bander Bob Scott Placier came out and did a very special thing - he banded one of our Phoebes. The hope and plan was to band both parents, but Mama Phoebe was on the nest while we were setting up the mist nets and had her eye on us the whole time, so she had a very good idea that we were up to something. Something that she didn't really want to take part in, thank you very much. Fair enough, Mama. The baby Phoebes were still very young at that point, so she needed to spend as much time on the nest as possible in order to keep them warm.

After patiently waiting an hour or so, Papa Phoebe finally flew by and into the nets. Bob worked quickly to record the relevant data and put the band on his leg so Papa could get back to the business of foraging for his young. I did have time, though, so snap a few quick shots of our proud Papa.



Now, when the Phoebes come back to nest next March, I will be looking for a band on one member of the pair to confirm whether or not the same birds are coming back here year after year.

Here's a video of the very active babies, taken on April 30th. Peeping, wing flapping, tail wagging - yes, I would say they are the picture of health.

Waiting for the all-clear

I was watching the birds at the feeders this afternoon, and they were going about their own business of eating and chatting when all of the sudden everyone got the heck out of Dodge. Soon thereafter a hawk swooped through (Cooper's or Sharp-shinned, not sure which - it flew through much too quickly and didn't perch long enough for me to get binoculars on it). Unfortunately, one little bird got left behind when the others took off.

White-breasted Nuthatch, hoping he hasn't been made
The hawk was far gone when I looked over and noticed this fellow dangling upside down on a branch. I guess he thought he had better odds of not becoming a hawk snack by freezing in place in this odd position rather than fleeing.

He stayed like this for maybe 30 seconds, craning his head to get a better view of the situation. I'm certainly used to seeing Nuthatches creeping head-first down trees, but seeing him suspended in this position from a branch for an extended period of time was quite odd.

I don't know if the hawk caught a meal during it's fly-by or not, but I can say that this Nuthatch lived to see another day. It's always good to report a happy ending.

American Goldfinch plumage

Starting this morning and going well into the afternoon, the American Goldfinches at my feeders were extremely vocal. I would go so far as to call them raucous, an adjective normally reserved for the Blue Jay. I thought they sounded noisy from inside the house, but once I got outside, it was almost deafening. This is no exaggeration! It was similar to being near a pond full of spring peepers turned up to 11, but not quite as high-pitched. I'm not sure what had them going, but their loud vocalizations inspired me to post some pictures that I haven't gotten around to sharing.

I've been watching the goldfinches at my feeders this season with great interest. They are always one of the most dominant species at the feeder in terms of overall numbers, so I guess it shouldn't be too surprising that I've observed some interesting-looking birds as they come in to dine.

We'll start off looking at some "normal" goldfinches. Here we have 4 very piggy finches stuffing themselves on black-oil sunflower seeds. Unlike Titmice or Chickadees, for example, who have to hold seeds between their toes while they peck them open with their beaks, goldfinches are able to work the seeds open right in their mouth. This means they can just sit on the feeders and go from one seed to the next, while the Titmouse or Chickadee has to pick a single seed and then go fly off to find a suitable perch for holding the seed and pecking it open. Go back and get another seed, fly off to suitable perch, peck open - repeat over and over. What I'm getting at with this is that the goldfinches can be very dominating at the feeders because they don't have to give up their seat at the table every time they go for a new seed. Therefore, the tube feeders tend to be full of only goldfinches a lot of the time.

Anyway, back to the plumage. Like I said, these are "normal"-looking birds in their non-breeding plumage. I'm still working on getting males and females differentiated, which is a little tricky during the winter. I'm pretty sure there's at least one male in the photo above(top right), and I'm basing that on the presence of the yellow "shoulder patch." The others I'm not entirely sure about.

I do feel pretty confident that this is a female, though. The girls, unfortunately, are drab year-round. They molt into slightly perkier feathers for breeding season, but not much. Even the black and white in their wings is kind of dingy-looking, another hint at the sex of the bird.

Here's another female. Drab, perhaps, but still pretty darn cute.

In this aerial ballet I think I see all boys. You'll notice the bird at top center has some black markings on his forehead - a definite field marking of a male. Also, I see more yellow "shoulder patches" on the other two.

This bird really caught me off-guard. First, it's definitely a male - bright yellow all over, and look how crisp the black and white coloring is in the wings and tail. Also, there's the full black cap of a male. There is one problem though: this is bordering on breeding plumage, and this photo was taken on December 4th. What the...????? This is a real head-scratcher for me. Why isn't he in more drab non-breeding plumage? Did he not molt completely in the fall? Is his internal clock off? And why is his beak still dark (it would normally be almost orange during breeding season) - why doesn't it match with what his feathers are showing me?


Here's another series of photos of a similar situation, taken on February 13th. Is it the same bird? What are the chances that there's more than one male in almost full-on breeding plumage hanging around? I saw a similar bird at the feeders today (March 6th). I would have to think it's the same bird on all 3 occasions.


Now we start getting into some of the odd plumage variations I have seen this season. I know that American Goldfinches can look quite patchy and odd when they are going through a molt, but I don't have any reason to believe that any of the remaining photos in this post illustrate molting, simply based on the time of year and the isolation of the patterning. The bird above has an odd white patterning on its head, and also has a pink beak (beak should be dark this time of year).

Here's some more strange patterning on the head, but I see a dark beak, so it can't be the same bird as "pink beak" (both photos were taken on the same day).

Here's my final example of funky plumage patterning on the head - the beak is a mix of pink and dark and there's certainly something odd about the coloring on the head.
The first thing that came to mind when I saw these birds were some terms that I have read over the years: leucistic and piebald. I almost hesitate to mention the terms, though, simply because my understanding of them is very poor, and it would seem that there's not much good information about the terms online, either. All I know is that these are terms used to describe genetic abnormalities that affect pigmentation in animals (not limited just to birds). Cornell has a page that tries to explain some of the terms, but I came away from it still quite confused. The correct use of these terms is even a subject of great contention to some (see a vet's take on it here). If there's anyone out there who can explain all of this to me in plain English, I would love to be enlightened!

I bring all of this up to illustrate that all is not so cut and dry in the world of birding (as if you thought it was!), and also to show that there are always interesting and anomalous things to be on the lookout for, even at our backyard feeders.

Luckily, goldfinches are pretty docile birds in the hand, allowing for good looks at their feathers up close, thus leading to a better understanding of their age and gender. But that's a story for another post...

Vultures

The southern third of Ohio is a unique location when it comes to vultures, as we can boast being home to two species of North American vultures - the Turkey Vulture and the Black Vulture (TUVU and BLVU for short). We are at the very northern-most edge of the Black Vulture's range, and while Turkey Vultures are common breeders throughout Ohio, wintering TUVUs are most frequently found on the lower third of the state.

I knew that a predictable location to find Black Vultures was at the lodge in Hocking Hills State Park, but I had never noticed them in Athens County until a little over a month ago.

Would it freak you out to see this sight in your neighborhood?
As I was driving in to work one snowy morning in December, I noticed some vultures at a deer carcass alongside the road. It took another day or two for me to realize that they were BLACK Vultures, and that there was not one carcass, but two - one on each side of the road. They feasted on the two carcasses for quite a few days, and I thought they might disperse once they were finished with them.

Insert your best Lurch "You rang?" imitation here.
Well, they stayed even after they picked those deer bones clean. Some days I can drive by the spot and see nary a vulture, but other days they look like they are thinking of taking over the neighborhood. I don't know what folks who live on this street think about the vultures choosing this as a roosting and congregating area, but I imagine they are not too pleased with it.

Unfortunately, vultures get a bad rap for their seemingly filthy habit of eating carrion (somebody has to pick up the garbage, though, right?), and in the case of Black Vultures, they are not liked by farmers as they have been known to pick off newborn calves, lambs, and pigs (although information from the Birds of North American Online website suggests that they eat live prey only "occasionally.")

I try to appreciate all birds for their unique characteristics, but will admit that I'm more drawn to those who fall into the "cute" category. Neither the Turkey Vulture nor the Black Vulture really fall into that category for me. Especially when I see them lined up on the roof of someone's house, or the fence surrounding someone's swimming pool - then they start to look a little... creepy (sorry!).

The main house these Black Vultures have chosen to congregate on is currently unoccupied. I'm not sure if it's on the market right now or not (I haven't seen a "for sale" sign in the yard for many months), but if it is, this could definitely have a negative effect on the property value!

As evening sets in, these Black Vultures almost appear to be saluting the sun.
Another thing going against them is a problem that you have with any bird: whitewash. Of course, that's just a colloquial way of saying "That bird done pooped all over my roof/car/insert other personal object here!" The larger the bird, the larger the excrement. And never mind if you are one of the birds who happens to be roosting below someone else who has to go.

Whitewash, on wings. It took me a few minutes to figure out that this was poo and not some kind of variation in plumage.

Whitewash, on roof. Nothing says "Welcome to the neighborhood!" like a poopy roof!
Across the road from this house there's a large tree that's also acting as a roosting area, and it's been host to both Black AND Turkey Vultures.

In fact, while I was out taking these pictures, the Turkey Vultures started circling overhead.

Turkey Vulture overhead in flight
I wish that I had a similar photo of the Black Vulture in flight to show for comparison, but right now I don't. The silvery-white all along the length of the wing (as well as in the tail) when seen from below is a key field mark when telling TUVUs apart from BLVUs. Black Vultures have white-ish coloring only at the very tips of their wings, which is illustrated in this BLVU that is taking flight:

Interestingly, Black Vultures are quite dependent on Turkey Vultures. TUVUs are well known for their keen sense of smell, but this is a trait not shared by the Black Vulture. Thus, BLVUs rely on TUVUs to find the carrion, and then they will muscle their way in and take over the carcass. Black Vultures fly higher in the sky than Turkey Vultures so that they can keep track of where the TUVUs are and follow them quickly to a food source. When examining range maps of the two species, it is obvious that the Black Vultures only live in areas where Turkey Vultures also exhibit a year-round presence.

I will be interested to observe how long the Black Vultures stay around this part of town. There is another well-known part of town where vultures (probably both species) stage spectacular flights in the morning and in the evening, but I haven't seen the birds in that area for a while. Yet one more item to put on my radar for "further observation."

A mixed group of vultures soaring in the evening sky.